Traveling to Vietnam one of the must do things on your list should be to go to Halong Bay with its limestone islands that jut out from the warm water like stone skyscrapers adorned with petrified forests that are so close in proximity its like sailing through a valley that is flooded rather than a busy bay.  With thousands of these little islands thrust upwards and virtually look like they are touching the sky will take your breath away.

Folk lore has said the reason why the islands are the way that they are is a powerful dragon discovered that other creatures were conspiring against him so he blew magic fire on them and turned all the islands to stone.  This tale makes the limestone formations with sheer walls that are topped by greenery all the more mystical.  There are some of the weathered formations that when you look closely can resemble animals.  Our guide pointed out many animal formations such as toad, rat, tortoise, lion and dog and many more.

To drink in the atmosphere my friend and I booked on one of the many junk tours on offer and we selected the Halong Jasmine, purely due to its opulent reproduced look of a 1930s sailing vessel complete with 3 orange sails.  Our vessel is one of 3 luxury junks in the Halong fleet along with Halong Violet and Halong Ginger.

It has a total of 24 cabins spread over 2 decks with a bar and restaurant you can meet up with other travellers at the end of the day.  On the dark and highly polished timbered floors you will walk up the stairs to the upper deck where you will find a terrace and sundeck area.

The junk we were on is fairly new only launched in 2007 and carries all the modern cons that we are all used to such as air conditioning, mini bar, safe and 24 hour room service.  If you like to indulge yourself you will find the 55m long vessel also had a spa and a massage room.  If like me you love seafood then you will be thrilled to know along with the other ample meals there is local seafood galore.

If you pay a little extra and book a cabin with private veranda to sit and watch as the world goes by it is well worth the money.  The booking we made includes return transfers to Hanoi which is approximately 4 hours away by private car.  There are tons of day trips or overnight tours to select from but I would recommend that to immerse yourself in the atmosphere and to take in the surreal surrounds as you make your way by gliding between the islands in protected waters you can’t go past the 2 – night cruise.

At other times it is like being in a tropical fjord rather than a bay with little islands so close it feels like being on a river with the mainland on both sides of your junk.  Most of the islands are comparable to large CBD buildings, but the majority of the islands are too sheer for habitation with only a few that have beaches or areas for a boat to pull into.

Savouring this pristine view and knowing that there are only a few signs of people from apart from the occasional fishing boat makes this place all the more special and very different from the normal tourists tours where there are hundreds of tours on at the same time all scrambling for the same views and places of interest.

There is little land for housing but what I noticed deep in the bay there are 4 fishing villages and I am informed that there is about 1600 people all living in floating houses.  Most of the village men scramble to make a living as fishermen. There life is a lot harder living when you consider living within the confines of a small houseboat.

Getting back to the junk where there is cocktails served on the deck then dinner following made us appreciate more the comfort of our junk.  Getting up in the am to the one of many tai chi classes that is run throughout the day, having breakfast and then transferred to a smaller boat we were transferred to Titop island.

This island is one of the few that have a sand beach.  Both my partner and I then had a swim and a walk around where we attempted to climb 427 stone stairs to the pagoda to then be rewarded by spectacular views.

During the afternoon we were on a kayak trip exploring out of the way caves and looked in wonder as we paddled into a primitive silent lagoon surrounded by forest that time had forgotten.

To end our day an excellent seafood bbq on board where we swapped tales with other travellers.  We had another kayak in the morning, which took us to Bo Hon island where Sung Sot cave is home to stalagmites and stalactites before returning to our junk for the trip back to Halong Bay.

This trip is definitely one for people who want travel that is able to get off the beaten track and do something different and get away from the throngs of other tourists and would rank this one of the best adventure travels that I have been on of late.